naccb 2016 madison wi

It’s Our Nature to KnowAlberta Biodiversity Monitoring Institute

Monitoring the cumulative effects

of human footprint on biodiversity

in Alberta

Multi-taxa Monitoring in North AmericaJuly 18, 2016 – NACCB Madison WI


Péter Sólymos([email protected])

with Jim Schieck, Dave Huggard, Ermias T. Azeria, and Marie-Claude Roy

The Alberta context

• Population is projected to increase from 4M to 6M by 2040.

• This means increasing demand for resources,

• and challenges for cumulative effects management.

• Public policy expanding as a result (land-use planning, energy, water)

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Beyond Crises Management

Much of the existing effort focused on crisis management

Broad stewardship and sustainability

information still required

• Proactive

• Broad spatial/temporal scales

• Robust science

• Integrated and cost-effective

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• Species at risk

• Habitat at risk (grasslands,

wetlands)

• Acute, localized contamination

What does ABMI do?

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• ABMI was designed to measure cumulative effects of human activity over time.

• Provide the information necessary to manage Alberta’s species and biodiversity (government & industry):– Track changes in habitats & native

vegetation

– Map species abundances

– Determine species habitat associations

– Determine how human land use affects each species

– Assess recovery following reclamation

– Track population changes over time

– Communicate findings to the public

Sampling designrobust to new types of disturbances

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Sites surveyed(2003 – 2014)

Burton et al. 2014 Environ Monit Assess186:3605–3617

Survey protocols

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Sólymos et al. 2013Frontiers in Ecol Env11:178–179

Terrestrial protocolat random location

offset from public location

Aquatic protocolat nearby wetland

Public location

Winter snow transect

Species sampled (>2200)

• Birds,

• mammals,

• vascular plants,

• bryophytes,

• lichens,

• mites,

• aquatic invertebrates.

Chosen based on ease of sampling, statistical properties, and importance to society.

Also sampling: habitat elements, wetland/water characteristics.

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Data and information management

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Sólymos et al. 2015 Wildlife Society Bulletin

39:472–479

Human footprint

Single product integrating all types of human disturbance:• Energy • Forestry• Agriculture• Urban, Rural Residences• Industrial Facilities• Transportation

Where possible built from existing GIS layers.

Some new layers created and validated against satellite images.

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Vegetation

Current vegetationnatural habitats and human footprint• single layer integrating existing info,• broad classes of vegetation

(~20 upland & ~5 lowland classes)• spatial variation in accuracy• regularly updated.

Reference vegetation human footprint backfilled• linear features: nibbling from the

edges,• polygon features: logical rules and

types of surrounding vegetation.

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Species with many observations

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(mammals, birds, plants, bryophytes, lichens, mites)

Complex modelinghabitat relationships

Reference CurrentCumulative effects

Ruby-crownedKinglet

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Full model results (n=922)

Basic data summaries (n=1363)

Assessing sustainability

Informing decision making

• Species distributions (can the species be there?)

• Habitat and habitat suitability(% of population can be exposed?)

• Extent & type of footprint(is it a hazard?)

• Response to footprint(what is the risk?)

Adaptive monitoring

• Tracks regional changes in habitats, species and biodiversity

• Confront predictions and data, extend and refine models

• Help stakeholders understand ecological changes and associated landscape drivers

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BiodiversityIntactness

Time

BD

Predictedchange

Observedchange

Recognized in Land-use Planning

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Regional plans must show a long-term vision for the health of biodiversity in the region.

This is done using a regionalBiodiversity Management Framework

2008 – Alberta published the Land-use Framework:• calls for the creation of seven regional plans,• designed to manage the growing pressures on the environment.

Continental scale integration

Design based (standardization)

• Make survey protocol compatible (similar/nested area/time effort)

• Recommendations are usually not followed;best to coordinate efforts.

Model based (reconciliation)

• Find common currency through modeling(probability of occurrence,density)

• Account for differences in protocol / survey effort

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The best bet is a combination of the two

Find out more about ABMI

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blog.abmi.ca@ABbiodiversity

Photo credits: ABMI where not noted otherwise

species.abmi.ca www.abmi.ca

naccb 2016 madison wi

Environment